Extensible filing drawer



April 28, 1942.

c. w. sTRAuBEL 2,281,465

EXTENSIBLE FILING DRAWER l Filed June 6, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet J:

ClarecWS/rdubel7 April 28, 1942. c. w. sTRAUBEI.

EXTENSIBLE FILING DRAWER Filed June 5, 1941 I N VENTO/e Clarence WSr/w be l,

Patented Apr. 28, 1942 UNITI-:o STATES PATENT otr-ICE.

EXTNSBLE FILING DRAWER Clarence W. Straubel, Youngstown, Ohio, as-

signor to The General Fireproofng Company, Youngstown, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 6, 1941, Serial No. 396,955

(Cl. 12S-26) 3 Claims.

This invention relates to drawers for filing cabinets and more particularly to improvements in the drawer head and drawer body.

A primary object is to provide a drawer whose normal over-all length may be automatically extended lineally when the drawer is pulled open, that is out of the cabinet, to free the drawer contents for greater ease of removal and replacement as well as better visibility. In that connection the invention contemplates a drawer head, a compressor, and a drawer body, said drawer head and drawer body being slidably and telescopically related so that the mere act of opening and closing the drawer automatically increases the length of the drawer upon opening and restores it to its normal condition upon closing.

A further object is to mount the compressor in such a way that when the drawer is open, it may be kept out of contact with the drawer contents and thus enable the latter to be opened up and spread over a relatively wide angle to provide greater ease and facility in handling.

With the -above and other objects in view which will be more readily apparent as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practical embodiment of the invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which: l

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a drawer embodying the present improvements,` the position of the drawer head and compressor being shown in full lines when the drawer is in its closed psition, and in dotted line when the drawer is pulled open.

Figure 2 is a partial top plan view of the construction shown in Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is an enlarged longitudinal vertical sectional view of the invention.

Figure 4 is an enlarged partial transverse sectional View.

Fig. 5 is a detailed vertical section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary horizontal section of one corner of the drawer head, the line of section being taken along the line 6-6 of Fig. 4 and above the hinge shown in Fig. 5.

Similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures of the drawings.

As will be observed from Fig. 1, the drawer preferably consists of a main drawer body A and a drawer head B having body extension means C which telescopically :and slidably interlt with the main drawer body A. A compressor, designated generally as D, is mounted in rear of the drawer head B on the drawer bottom and is normally tilted inwardly when the drawer is in its closed and relatively collapsed condition. However, when the drawer head B is moved outwardly relative to the main body A of the drawer, the compressor may be tilted outwardly, thereby furnishing a wall or plate against which the contents of the drawer may rest when the drawer is pulled open. The main drawer body is slidably mounted on suitable ball suspension means of the type, for example, shown in the Anderson Patent No. 1,963,220 dated June 19, 1934.

The main drawer body A preferably consists of the side walls I provided at their Vupper edges with the inwardly facing channels 2, which preferably have the downwardly projecting inner flange portions 3, The bottom wall 4 of the main drawer body may be of any desired cross-sectional configuration, although, as shown, it preferably includes the side channels 5 and the medial channel 6 for accommodating suitable dividers, followers, and the like. Preferably the bottom 4 is carried over the sides of the channels 5 and 6 as indicated at 4a and 4b respectively to assist in supporting and guiding the drawer head extension means as will presently appear.

The drawer head B is generally of the conventional type, having the operating handle 1 at its outer face, while its inner side is provided with body extension means consisting of the side w-alls 8 and bottom channels 8a together with a central channel 9. The side walls 8, channels 8a and 9 are of the same cross-sectional shape or configuration as the side walls and channels of the main drawer body A so as to slidably telescope and mate within corresponding parts of the said main drawer body to be movable relative thereto in the opening and closing movements of the drawer relative to the cabinet or casing. Preferably, the side Walls I-I of the main drawer body are offset outwardly a suiiicient distance, for example, the thickness of the metal, to accommodate and receive the side walls 8-8 of the drawer head extension means, as will be apparent from Fig. 2. 'I'he side walls of the channels 8a and 9 are bent upon themselves at their upper edges to give them greater strength where they engage beneath the downwardly flanged portions Ila and 4b of the drawer bottom 4 at the location of the channels 5 and 6.

For the purpose of limiting relative outward or equivalent bumper strips B which are in tended to cushion the shock incident to the CTI drawer head striking the end of the usual fixed part or channel of the ball or roller suspension means for the drawer when the drawer is pushed into the cabinet and the head telescoped with the drawer body.

The compressor D preferably consists of a plate I pivotally supported as at I I on upstanding brackets I2 carried by the bottom 4 of the main drawer body. Preferably, the plate I0 is tensioned by vthethrowback spring I3 (Fig. 4) which is mounted on the pintle of the hinge or pivot mounting II, thereby to normally urge the Vcompressor plate inwardly of the drawer body within the limits provided by the offset stop arms I4 carried by the upper side edges of the plate. The face of the compressor D adjacent the drawer head B is provided with a loop I5 for slidably receiving the pivot pin I5, carried by the bifurcated ends I1 of a link I8. This link has its lower end hingedly connected as at I9 with the inner face of the drawer head B.

Since the compressor plate D is pivoted at II to a fixed location on the bottom wall 4 of the main drawer body A, and the link I8 is hinged at I9 to the inner face of the drawer head, while the pin I6 thereof slidably engages the loop I5, it will be apparent that when the drawer head B slides or moves relative to the main drawer body A, the compressor plate will be controlled by the movement of the drawer head. In other words, whenv the drawer head and the drawer 'extension portions carried` thereby are in full telescoped relation to the main drawer body A, the compressor D will assume the inwardly tilted position shown in full lines in Fig. l. On the other hand, when the operator pulls the drawer head B by the handle 'I and the drawer extension walls at the inner side of the drawer head move outwardly with the drawer head, the latter will pull the lower end of the link I8 outwardly and thus pull the compressor plate D to the outwardly tilted position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that the present invention provides a construction wherein the main drawer body A and the drawer head B are slidably and telescopically related to move longitudinally and lineally to increase the over-all length of the drawer, while a compressor plate supported by the main drawer body may be tilted inwardly or outwardly, depending on the relation of the drawer head B to the main drawer body A. While it is preferable to use a spring on the order of I3 to urge the compressor plate D inwardly, nevertheless, it is entirely within the scope of the invention to omit the spring and have the compressor plate controlled in its movement relative to the drawer head by the link I8 or its equivalent.

Inall contingencies the essential combination of elements `provides the saine primary result, namely, a drawer which is of extensible over-all length when pulled outwardly to free the drawer contents, and also provides the secondary result ofhaving a compressor plate which supports the drawer contents when the drawer head is moved'to its` outwardly extended position relative to the'main drawer body.

I claim: 1. A drawer for filing cabinets, comprising, a main drawer body, a drawer head having a body extension slidably and telescopically intertting with the front of .the main drawer body, a compressor plate pivotally supported on the front end of the maindrawer body, spring means for urgingsaid plate inwardly, a loop on the face of said compressor plate nearest the drawer Mhead, Aa link pivoted at one end to the drawer head and having its opposite end slidable in the loop whereby movement of the drawerhead relative to the drawer body controls the inward and outward movement of the compressor plate.

end to the drawer head, and cooperating means respectively on the other end of the link and on `the frontfaceof the compressor to provide a sliding connection between the last mentioned end of the link and the compressor whereby movement of the drawer head relative to the drawer body controls the inward and outward movementof the compressor plate.

3. A drawer for ling cabinets, comprising a main drawer body, a drawer head having a body extension slidably and telescopically intertting with the bottom of the main drawer body, a compressor plate pivotally supported on the front end of the main drawer body, a link pivoted at one end to the drawer head above the point of pivotal support of the compressor plate andv cooperating means respectively on the other end of the link and on the front face of the compressorlocated' abovev the points of pivotal support for -thelink and compressor plate to provide a sliding connection between the last mentioned end of the link and the compressor whereby movement of the drawer head relative to the drawer body controls the inward and outward movement of the compressor plate.

CLARENCE W. STRAUBEL. 

